avocado

Disclaimer: Sharky’s provided me with a voucher to try their new location. I was not compensated for this post and I was not required to write a positive review. All opinions are my own.

When it comes to eating out I tend to stick to local spots in Portland. I love to support local businesses, the ability to know where my food is coming from and unless we are traveling I don’t spend a ton of time in the ‘burbs. However there is the occasional time I cross the river and head out of Portland and when I do I need a go to spot to eat.

I feel like I have been searching for places that not only have great plant-based options but also quality of food and finally I have another great spot to add to my list – Sharky’s Woodfired Mexican Grill. Sharky’s does their best to source organic, natural and local ingredients and they have so many plant-based options!

Before heading in to give them a try I did a little research regarding plant-based options and they actually do a pretty great job of labeling items on their menu. I also found that The Veganista Foodie had put together a pretty great cheat sheet as well – which I of course used.

We started out with chips and guacamole and of course took advantage of the salsa bar and tired just about every salsa available. I could have eaten a bowl of the guacamole and those chips – so good! While we waited for our meals the kids also munched on their mini churros which were okay but a bit too crunchy for their liking.

For meals the kids shared a kid’s bowl with organic tofu, organic brown rice and organic beans and a kid’s power plate with organic tofu, organic brown rice and organic yams. The went nuts for the tofu and while they weren’t so much into the yams Neil and I thought they were fantastic. In order to waste not I took the yams home and added them to a vegan mac and cheese and of course the kids gobbled it up.

As for the adults we shared the organic tofu and veggie burrito and an organic tofu and veggie taco plate. The burrito was massive and we could have easily just shared it because it was so much food. The veggie taco plate was delicious as well; we both loved the tofu and the veggies were cooked perfectly. Overall we were super impressed.

We don’t head to Tualatin very often but I have to say Sharky’s might just have me visiting a bit more often. Our trip also took us to a spot we had never visited before and we ended up visiting a nice New Season’s and discovered the Tualatin ArtWalk. So mini trips to the ‘burbs are proving to be a bit more delightful.

What are your favorite restaurants in the ‘burbs? Have you ever been to Sharky’s? If yes, any favorites?

Avocado Hummus & Quinoa Stuffed Mushrooms

This past weekend was so busy for us that I decided to keep things simple and yet tasty in the kitchen. I had picked up a few portobello mushroom caps at the market on Friday with the intention of making portobello “burgers” but we ended up not having the other fixings (buns, lettuce, large tomatoes, ect) to really make a good burger so I decided to stuff them. The stuffing is a mish-mash of a bunch of things we had in the fridge and in the end this turned out to be a really tasty dish. I made these as entree sized portions but the stuffing would also be great in small button mushrooms as an appetizer.

Preheat the oven to 375F. Cook the quinoa. While the quinoa is cooking mash together the avocado and the hummus in a medium sized bowl and place the portobellos on a lined baking sheet cap side down. Add the quinoa to the avocado hummus and season with salt and pepper to taste. Fill the portobello mushrooms with the quinoa filling. Drizzle the stuffed mushrooms with a little olive oil and place in the oven to cook for 15-20 minutes, until the mushroom is tender and the filling has set. While the mushrooms bake, heat the olive oil in a saute pan over medium heat. Add the tomatoes and garlic and cook for a few minutes until the tomatoes release their juices. Add the nutritional yeast, salt and pepper. Once the mushrooms are done top with a big spoonful of the tomato sauce. ENJOY!

Yesterday morning I had my heart set on making this recipe . I had all the ingredients for the mole sauce and prepared it in the morning so I would only have to worry about making the tamales when I arrived home after work. Well I spent the rest of the day thinking about the fact that I wasn’t in love with the mole sauce and also how it seemed silly to try to make something when corn isn’t in season and frozen corn for the tamales just didn’t seem like it would be as good. So, I scrapped it which put me in another dilemma- How can I use this sauce?

I decided to make enchiladas and I picked up the fixings for them which was the easy part. Now to the hard part making this raw mole sauce into a mole enchilada sauce that tasted good. I started by heating the mole sauce with vegetable broth to thin it out, however this did not improve the taste- it just was like spicy, nutty, chocolate soup. Then I got the idea to add more chili powder, cumin, salt, pepper, ume plum vinegar, tomato sauce and a number of other things I can’t remember until it tasted good.

I made a filling of refried beans, mushrooms and spinach which I then rolled up and placed in a baking dish. I topped with the mole enchilada sauce and a dusting of nutritional yeast and placed in the oven to bake for 20 minutes uncovered. Once it came out of the oven I topped with a drizzle of smoky paprika cheeze sauce (based off this recipe) and a little avocado.

Well they look good right? Now the test was to see if they actually tasted as good as they look. The verdict: they were really amazing, however due to all the playing around to make the sauce taste good it is going to be difficult to recreate this dish that turned out amazing by mistake. Oh well, I think I have enough knowledge on how to recreate it and I hope to try it again- but this time I will write everything down so you can try it too!

For dessert we tried one of the sample cookies sent to me from Enjoy Life Foods; they sent the Snickerdoodle, Double Chocolate Brownie and Lively Lemon to test out for them. Last night we tried the Snickerdoodle, overall the Hubz and I thought that they were okay. They were nice and soft but we both felt that they were super sugary tasting and the texture was almost like eating brown sugar (we just aren’t sugar lovers). I am hoping that the other two flavors are better.

This week I declared that we would be eating a high raw diet because I always feel amazing after I take a week to just let my body relax and step away from wheat, gluten and any processed foods. Well things were going strong we had delicious mock raw tuna sandwiches on sprouted bread with raw spicy carrot soup for diner on Sunday. Yesterday for lunch I had a big red apple and left over mock tuna over greens with tomato which was delicious and better than the mock tuna on sprouted bread. For a snack after work I enjoyed a tray of these yummy crispy things:

Yeah those are kale chips, not just any kale chips though, these are spicy cheezy kale chips and they are addictive.

Well after all that sounds like we were on the right track to eating high raw this week, eh? Then it came time for dinner and all I could think about is how much I wanted brown rice with curry. I tried to convince myself that I could just do a big green salad with a raw curry dressing but I just couldn’t get past my craving for warm food. So I decided to go with it, but first I had to evaluate the veggie situation because if it wasn’t going to be raw I wanted it packed with veggies. This is what I found:

Add to that coconut milk and green curry paste:

and then of course my secret special ingredient, avocado, an ingredient I had never heard of in Thai curry (I have now been informed people have seen it on the menu places). I know it sounds strange but as I was planning this curry I couldn’t stop thinking about the creamy basket of avocados sitting on counter and decided to take a chance and add it to my curry.

For dessert we had raw chocolate which my husband said and I quote “I will never be able to look the same way at chocolate again.” This is really the most amazing chocolate that either of us has ever had; the flavor is outstanding.

This weekend has been filled with great new recipes, great conversation and the most amazing chocolate I have ever had. On Saturday after a crazy morning filled with bagels, markets and lots of coffee the Hubz and I came home to prepare for our dinner guest. We took a break from cleaning and organizing to enjoy a Dominex Eggplant Burger over greens with tomatoes and avocado served with rutabaga flax fries.

Serves 2- pre heat oven to 425F. Peel and cut 2 small rutabaga into fries and place in a bowl. Toss the rutabaga with 1 teaspoon of olive oil, 1 tablespoon of flax meal, 1 tablespoon of nutritional yeast, 1 teaspoon chili powder and a pinch of salt and pepper. Bake for 25-30 minutes until tender and browned.

More cleaning and a little napping happened and then it was time to make dinner for Allie from Healthy Balance, Healthy Life. Allie wanted to make hummus using her new food processor so that set the tone for the entire meal. I decided to go with a Mediterranean themed meal which included lemon-garlic-oregano marinated tofu, tomato, onion and pepper skewers, olives, pita, tahini-parsley dressing and carrot sticks and radishes with Allie’s roasted red pepper hummus.

tofu and tomato skewers

onion and pepper skewers

The marinade/baste for the veggies and tofu included:

1 cup vegetarian chicken broth (could sub vegetable broth)

2 Tablespoon chopped parlsey

1 Tablespoon Dijon mustard

2 Tablespoons lemon juice

1 teaspoon thyme

2 teaspoons oregano

1/2 teaspoons salt

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

3 garlic cloves, minced

3 Tablespoons olive oil

Whisk these all together and pour over skewered veggies and tofu and allow to marinate for 2-4 hours. Remove from the marinade and place on parchment lined baking sheets; pre-heat oven to 425F. Place the remaining marinade in a small sauce pan and place over high heat; bring to a boil and then reduce the heat to a simmer until the sauce has reduced by half. Remove from the heat and brush the veggies and tofu. Place in the oven and bake for 15 minutes. Remove and baste with more of the reduced marinade; return to the oven and bake for 15 more minutes. Remove from the oven once again and baste the veggies and tofu with the remaining marinade. Turn the oven on to broil and broil on high until the veggies and tofu are lightly browned.

carrot sticks and radishes

yummy mixed olives

tahini-parsley sauce and whole wheat pita

Allie's Roasted Red Pepper Hummus

Serves 4- in a small sauce pan heat 1 Tablespoon of olive oil, add 1/2 a minced sweet onion and saute over medium-high for 5-6 minutes until the onions soften. Stir in the garlic and 1 (15oz) can of rinsed and drained chickpeas; cook for 2 minutes. Stir in 1 (12oz) package of defrosted frozen spinach, 2 tablespoons of nutritional yeast and salt and pepper to taste; cook until heated through.

For dessert we enjoyed Lulu’s raw chocolate which is easily by far the most amazing raw chocolate I have ever had. I find a a lot of raw chocolates do not have enough of a chocolate flavor and are sometimes chalky tasting but this chocolate was amazing and not only is the best raw chocolate I have ever had but one of the best chocolates. I will blog about these more once I try the other flavors I have.

After our late night chatting and enjoying Proseco with Allie we dragged ourselves out of bed this morning and headed to my parents house for the day. We enjoyed the day with my parents, grandma and Aunt Carol; we ate, played cards and laughed. When we got home we were hungry and ready to enjoy a nice high-raw dinner. This week we are going to eat high raw in hopes of detoxing our body a bit after enjoying lots of pasta, bread and drinks this weekend.

Dinner tonight consisted of a spicy carrot-avocado soup and raw tuna salad sandwiches which was served on multigrain Manna sprouted bread.

Spicy Carrot-Avocado Soup (raw)

Serves 2-3

1 & 2/3 cup carrot juice

1 avocado

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1/2 jalapeno

1 small garlic clove

pinch of cayenne pepper

Place all ingredients in a blender and puree until smooth.

The Raw Tuna Salad recipe came from Ani Phyo's Raw Food Essentials

You can get the Aioli Mayonaise recipe for the mock tuna sandwich here.

Whole grains are an excellent source of nutrition, as they contain iron, dietary fiber and vitamin E and B Vitamins. They are also absorbed slowly providing sustained and high-quality energy. To aid in digestion it is best to soak grains prior to cooking*; soaking helps to eliminate phytic acid which is what causes gas.

Beans can be a great source of fiber, protein and folic acid. For more information on beans and how to make them more digestible you can refer to this post – Beans, Beans, The Magical Fruit…

Greens are a great source of calcium, magnesium, iron, potassium, phosphorous, zinc and vitamins A, C, E and K; as well as fiber and folic acid. Some of the benefits of eating dark leafy greens are:

-Blood purification

-Cancer prevention

-Improved circulation
-Strengthened immune system

The best choices for greens are bok choy, napa cabbage, kale, collards, watercress, mustard greens, broccoli rabe and dandelion. Other good options are green cabbage, arugula, endive, chicory, lettuce, mesclun and wild greens. Spinach, Swiss chard and beet greens are good as well but should be eaten in moderation because they are high in oxalic acid, which depletes calcium from the bones and teeth; best eaten with tofu, seeds, nuts, beams, or oil to balance the effects of the oxalic acid.

*Whole Wheat Couscous is technically not a grain but rather a pasta product made from wheat and doesn’t require soaking.

Tonight I decided to try some new heirloom beans that I picked up at the health food store; I boiled them until tender and the sauteed them with garlic, shallot, olive oil and cremini mushrooms tossed with a little nutritional yeast and Braggs. I placed the beans on top of a bed of lettuce and a scoop of whole wheat couscous and topped with a little avocado.

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